Coppola upset over Godfather game

[sluggo]

http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/42245.htm

... Francis Ford Coppola is hopping mad at Paramount for turning his "Godfather" into a violent video game. Coppola, appearing on AMC's "Sunday Morning ShootOut" this Sunday (11 a.m.), says he never gave his permission for the video game — not that he was even asked about it.

"I knew nothing about it. They never asked me if I thought it was a good idea," he says. "I went and I took a look at what it was . . . What they do is they use the characaters everyone knows and they hire those actors to be there and only to introduce very minor characters. And then for the next hour they shoot and kill each other.

"I had absolutely nothing to do with the game and I disapprove," he says. "I think it's a misuse of film . . . "

[Mr Nash]

Yeah, I saw that. Here's an interesting bit from the March issue of EGM where they did a feature on the Godfather game.

While Coppola himself has refrained from any direct involvement in the game, EA says he has been supportive of the idea. "We did meet with him," DeMartini says, "and he embraced the project--not as something he wanted to work on, but he invited us up to his private library, where we spent many hours, and we have access to all of his notes via this library. He was very gracious, but he's done three of these things and he's really not interested in doing any more Godfather stuff."

[Moore]

I think he wears the Artist hat and the Money hat at different times.

[Drastic]

"I think it's a misuse of film . . . "

Call it karmic backlash for Godfather 3.

[Naked]

Francis Ford has been known to grandstand, stomp about and distort the truth when it suits his needs, or when he's unhappy with how things are going.

Methinks this is the case here...

[spooie]

You know, it would be nice if EA could give SOME credit to Mario Puzo in the title.

[extarbags]

You know, it would be nice if EA could give SOME credit to Mario Puzo in the title.

Yeah, I was just about to point out that Francis Ford Coppolla didn't create the fucking Godfather in the first place.

[Alan Dunkin]

Or maybe he's a gamer and realizes EA may very well screw it up.

"They ruined my Sims and now they want to do my movie!!"

--- Alan

[Andrew Mayer]

I'm not sure I care much about what the director of "Jack" has to say about this.

The fork was inserted long ago.

[tromik]

I think he wears the Artist hat and the Money hat at different times.

No kidding. Godfather, Converstaion, Godfather II, Apocolypse Now? WTF?

[Mike Hussey]

You know, it would be nice if EA could give SOME credit to Mario Puzo in the title.

Yeah, I was just about to point out that Francis Ford Coppolla didn't create the fucking Godfather in the first place.

True, but it was one the few instances where the movie was better than the book, which would have, no doubt, sunk into well deserved obscurity without the success of the film.

[extarbags]

You know, it would be nice if EA could give SOME credit to Mario Puzo in the title.

Yeah, I was just about to point out that Francis Ford Coppolla didn't create the fucking Godfather in the first place.

True, but it was one the few instances where the movie was better than the book, which would have, no doubt, sunk into well deserved obscurity without the success of the film.

That's not really that few. However, he still isn't the originator of the property.

[Bub, Andrew]

Extarbags doesn't even know what he's arguing about. Francis Ford Coppolla's name isn't in the title either man.

Someone said they should put Mario Puzo's name in the title (Puzo is all over the press docs). It's not like EA took credit from Puzo and gave it to Copolla. We're talking about Coppolla because he's the one this thread is about. Puzo is dead, so he hasn't commented yet, or maybe we'd have a thread with him bashing the game too.

[extarbags]

Extarbags doesn't even know what he's arguing about. Francis Ford Coppolla's name isn't in the title either man.

Someone said they should put Mario Puzo's name in the title (Puzo is all over the press docs). It's not like EA took credit from Puzo and gave it to Copolla. We're talking about Coppolla because he's the one this thread is about.

Right. Because he's pissed off that someone is making a game about the same thing he made a movie about. In other words, because he's whining and moaning that someone didn't consult him before adapting someone else's IP into a game.

[Bub, Andrew]

It's not even Puzo's IP man. It's owned by the movie company. But Coppolla has a right to bitch all he wants, he made the movies and his opinion is of interest to people watching that show (which is about movies). The guy won two deserved Academy Awards from those films. They're genius in a way the book doesn't match and the game cannot match even if it was the best game ever. Coppolla's opinion matters, IMO. Puzo's opinion would be interesting too, if he was alive.

But why should EA put Puzo's name in the title? Generally they only do that sort of thing because they want a different title or marketing wants USE the author to help sell something.

Coppolla made Bram Stoker's Dracula and that movie has less to do with Bram Stoker's book than the 1931 Dracula they were trying to distance themselves from with that title.

[Tom McNamara]

Movie rights and novel rights are often separate IPs for a franchise that has delved into both. Movie rights include the music, actor likenesses, location likenesses, etc, while novel rights are more basic--the story, the plot, the characters' names, that sort of thing. So, since the game features the faces of the characters from the movie, it's likely that we're dealing with the film IP and not the IP retained by Puzo's estate.

Typically, the movie studio retains film franchise IP, not the director, which is why EA could make the game without consulting Coppola or Puzo's estate. So you'll probably see the studio logo somewhere on the retail box.

[Major Malphunktion]

personally i thought the books sucked compared to the movie.
I think what he is pissed about is it sounds like it is just another shooter. Godfather was not an action movie, if anything it showed the horrible side of violence, not just violence for the sake of violence like say, a John Woo movie, or name any video game.
Now i think godfather, I think of running a global empire, that somethimes requires 'an offer you can't refuse'. But knowing how the industry is, it will be a run and gun killfest, and since Francis' movies have for the most part been about showing the horrors of violence, I can see why this pisses him off.

[Tom Chick]

FWIW, I was told there are separate IPs for the books, the movies, and the music (!). EA has licensed all three.

-Tom

[MattKeil]

I'd like to know what Coppola thinks about so many of the original actors lending their voices and likenesses to the game, too.

[Justin Fletcher]

I can see wanting to distance himself from the project if he had no input, but does Coppola really think fans will hold him responsible if the game sucks? I mean, I don't blame Bram Stoker for Bram Stoker's Dracula.

[shift6]

Maybe they could call it American McGee's Godfather. Just for a goof.

[Justin Fletcher]

Call it Sid Meier's The Godfather, and you've got a license to print money.